


The Purge: Extinguish

by DemonicClaymore, FictionDaze



Category: Batman - All Media Types, Boondock Saints (Movies), Death Note, Sherlock (TV), Supernatural, The Purge (2013), Walking Dead (TV)
Genre: Action, Attempted Rape/Non-Con, Consensual Sex, Dubious Consent, Explict Situations, Guns, Lots and Lots of Gay Pairings, Lots and Lots of Incest, M/M, Major Character Injury, Minor Character Death, Rape, Real World - No supernatural elements, Violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-07-04
Updated: 2014-07-15
Packaged: 2018-02-07 09:14:52
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 4
Words: 8,044
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1893558
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DemonicClaymore/pseuds/DemonicClaymore, https://archiveofourown.org/users/FictionDaze/pseuds/FictionDaze
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The world is amass with poverty and crime and the new government will do whatever it takes to make things better for the citizens of the United States. Cue the First Annual Purge.</p><p>Conner and Murphy MacManus are determined to survive while still maintaining a semblance of their humanity, but first they have to escape the threat of death. Along the way they befriend some cops, some rednecks, and some college kids, and encounter a whole slew of psychos out to make the next three days a living hell. </p><p>***<br/>Conner and Murphy are central characters, but the story follows each set of characters until they all meet. Additional characters and warnings will be added as the story progresses.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The MacManus Brothers

**Author's Note:**

> Hello everyone and welcome to another of Clay and I's collaborations. We're really excited about this one and will be working on it in tandem with finishing up _Servants of Man._
> 
> Please be aware that while this story is based on the concept of _The Purge_ , it is altered heavily to fit our needs. Additionally, this story takes place in New York, but we have a rational reason for all of the characters being there.
> 
> We really hope you'll all enjoy this story!
> 
> -FictionDaze

**The Purge: Extinguish**

There is an epidemic in this world. A plague that sickens all of mankind and causes them to rot from the inside out. Hatred is this sickness. Anger, ruin, regret, and fear are this sickness.

To vanquish from this earth the rotting carcass of human despair, a group rose from the ashes of their own detestment and have elected to rid the world of crime and resentment through ritual sacrifice. This group is composed of our new Founding Fathers and they have proposed that this ritual shall be henceforth known as The Purge.

_______

Murphy leaned back on the couch and flipped through the static-ridden thirteen channels again and again, watching the colors blur together and giggling like a little boy every time the audio lined up in an amusing fashion.

Click. _"Now you too--"_ Click. _"--can celebrate--"_ Click. _"--genital herpes."_

"Heh. Hey, Con, come here a sec, would ya?"

“What is it?" Conner called from the shower. "I'm kind of busy."

Splash. Splash.

Conner was enjoying a rather pleasant bubble bath. He had found the bottle of bath syrup under the sink when they moved into the new apartment and he decided to see if it actually worked. It had, and now there were bubbles nearly a foot high and he had been playing in them much like a small kid might for the past six minutes.

"Come here I said!" Murphy leaned over his shoulder and called toward the bathroom. He flopped back down and clicked through three more channels before landing on the only one with relative clarity. "How long does it take to shower?" he mumbled to himself.

"Ugh! Son-of-a--" Conner growled as he looked between the door and his bubbles. He didn't want to part with them, but heeding his brother's call was always something he had trouble ignoring. "All right!" he screamed. "Hold on a minute!"

The slightly taller of the two saints stood, bubbles dripping down his toned belly and running off the end of his manhood. It kind of tickled and he thought to take another dip and let it all happen again. The way the soap suds stuck together as they fell looked amusing to the man, but he knew there wouldn't be much more time to play. If he didn't move quickly, there was a good chance Murphy might come in and wreck the fun. 

Then again, maybe it wouldn't be so bad to have a bubble bath battle. 

"Maybe later," Conner told the bath. Then, he grabbed a towel from the back of the bathroom door and started drying off his soapy front side and he walked out into the one other room in the place. "What's going on?"

Murphy glanced toward Conner then back at the television before double taking and turning around completely on the couch to eye his wet brother. "The hell did you get bubble bath from?"

"What?" Conner scrunched up his nose as he looked down at himself. "How the fuck did ya figure that out?"

Murphy grinned and gestured at his own chest with the remote control he still held firmly in his grip. "You didn't think to rinse? You got bubbles all over your collarbone, genius. And uh..." He tilted his head to the side, giving himself a better angle of the mirror behind Conner that reflected his naked, soapy ass. "...other places."

Conner looked from his chest to Murphy and then looked his arms over. Then, he started trying to figure out what "other places" his brother was referring too. When he looked back and caught a glimpse of himself in the mirror, he let out a loud, "Ahh, shit!"

At once, Conner started trying to wipe the bubbles from his bottom. 

"Damn it." He looked up and saw the shit-eating grin on Murphy's face. "Oh! You think that's funny, do ya?" He rushed to clean himself off the rest of the way and then threw the towel at the giggling moron on the couch. "I bet 'cha think you're really clever."

"I'm brilliant, but listen there isn't a damn thing on the telly, you want to rent a movie tonight?" Murphy caught the moist towel with his free hand and chucked it onto the floor for Conner to deal with. "By the by, were you just gonna hog the bubble bath to yourself? That's just inconsiderate." 

Conner laughed and crossed his arms. He made a mock-wounded expression. 

"I can't believe you'd think I wasn't gonna share. I was just making sure that the bubbles were safe, you know, so your little butt doesn't break out like it did when we were kids." Conner grinned uncontrollably as he remembered when the two were boys and their mom had bought some generic bubble bath. Murphy was sore and itchy for almost three solid days after the bath. It was great! "Anyway, yeah, we should go rent a movie. But where the hell are we going to rent a movie on this side of New York?"

"Fuck you." Murphy lifted an eyebrow and looked at his brother as if he were crazy. "What do you mean 'where'? What time zone are you living in? We can just stop by the grocer or--Damn it!" Murphy's words were suddenly interrupted by a loud, sharp electronic noise from the television. His hands flew up to defend his ears against the offending sound. "What the hell?" He turned his attention to the television and glared at the blue screen that had appeared over the talk show that had occupied the display minutes before.

"What the hell is that!? Shit! Turn it down!" Conner was holding his palms to his ears as well. The sudden noise had caused him to jump. "Fuck! That's a bitch!"

The noise calmed before Murphy could hit the mute button and his finger stilled over the remote as a woman's voice began to speak. 

_“This is not a test. This is your emergency broadcast system announcing the commencement of the First Annual Purge sanctioned by the U.S. Government. Weapons of class 4 and lower have been authorized for use during the Purge. All other weapons are restricted. Government officials of ranking 10 have been granted immunity from the Purge and shall not be harmed. Commencing at the siren, any and all crime, including murder, will be legal for three consecutive days. Police, fire, and emergency medical services will be unavailable until the Purge concludes. For more information, please see your local station thirteen for more information. This message will stream for the next 72 hours. Blessed be our New Founding Fathers and America. May God be with you all."_

"What the--what is this?" Murphy turned to his brother with an expression of disgust and confusion. "Is this some sort of prank?"

"I don't rightfully know," Conner said in disbelief. "I've never heard of anything like it." Moving over to rest behind his brother, leaning on the back of the couch, Conner leered at the television screen as a last warning appeared. He put his hands on his brother's shoulders and swallowed hard. "Maybe its a-" 

Just then, bomb sirens outside suddenly went off, scaring the life out of both boys. 

"Shit!" Conner moved over, still naked, towards the window. He looked outside and saw that everything was oddly still and quiet save for the terrible noise of the sirens.

"Do you think this could be a trick?" Murphy was glaring at the screen with contempt, his mind rolling over potential explanations. "Maybe they're trying to drive us out of hiding. Maybe they think we'll just jump out, guns blazing, and they can arrest us. Good try, but no sir, not happening. What do they think of us?" Even as he said it, Murphy knew the thought was too conceded to be true. They hadn't even taken anyone out in six months since they'd been freed from prison. There was no reason for such a stunt. 

He changed the channel, paranoia leading him to believe that perhaps the message was flooding directly to their television. Unfortunately, the message was scrolling on every channel he passed. "It's on every station. What the hell's going on outside, Con?"

Conner continued to look outside. From his place at the window, he saw something truly disturbing, a large military vehicle with signs on the side he couldn't read from where he stood and gun-toting army sorts moving in front of and behind the damned thing. Sadly, they were playing the same message.

"I think we have a big problem on our hands, Brother." He swallowed thickly again and then moved away from the window and went back to where his brother was. He saw a message at the bottom of the television screen. "What's with that? Go there," he said, pointing to the message.

Murphy sighed in frustration and flipped over to channel thirteen. The channel was in the middle of scrolling whatever lecture it was providing and that woman's voice was back to read it to them. _"--for the good of humanity. It is for these reasons that the Founding Fathers have elected to instate the First Annual Purge. If successful, The Purge will rid society of harbored aggressions and cleanse our souls of sin. Support The Purge and unleash the beast. May God be with you all._

 _Hello. Welcome to the official Purge information channel. You may be asking yourself, 'What is The Purge?' Put simply, it is you and your nation's opportunity to release a lifetime of despair and anger..."_ The announcement went on to site national poverty statistics and crime rates and tried to blame it all on repression of natural human violence. The words started to sound like high-pitched buzzing to Murphy and he stood up and dropped the remote on the couch. 

"This is all wrong," he said softly. "Laws are guidance for the ignorant. They keep God alive through structure. Without law, who will our victims be? What if someone takes this seriously?"

"Come on, Murphy," Conner laughed, trying to make light of the situation. "Human beings aren't murders by nature. There are many good people in this world. The bar hasn't changed just because some government psycho decided to-"

BANG BANG!

Conner jumped and looked toward the apartment door. They were a couple of stories up so there was no confusing the noise for a backfiring tailpipe. 

BANG!

The gunfire came again, at the same distance. 

"Shit!" Conner moved over and grabbed his pants from the floor. He put them on and gave his brother a reassuring half-smile. "I'm sure its fine. It's not the first time we've heard that kind of thing around here. It's probably nothing. Just-"

BANG BANG BANG!

A scream came from down the hall, then another round.

"Nothing?" Murphy's eyes went wide with panic. "Yeah, sounds like nothing!" He rushed over to the rickety wooden desk and chairs that had served as the boys' dining table and yanked his jacket off the chair where it had been previously abandoned. "Grab the guns. I think we'll be needing them."


	2. The Dixon Brothers

“Where the hell is all the beer at?” 

Merle Dixon wasn’t in a particularly fantastic mood, having been woken up by the sound of his next-door neighbors fighting about their money problems again, and he needed something to numb the ache in his head. Beer, he thought, would be just the thing to aid him. Unfortunately, as he shifted through the mostly empty fridge, pushing a half-eaten orange out of the way, the man realized that there wasn’t a drop of beer in the house.

“Daryl!?” Merle whined. “Where’s all my beer at, boy?”

Daryl walked into the kitchen, crunching one of the cheap apartment's roaches beneath his boot as he moved. He crossed his arms and leaned against the doorframe and eyed his older brother carefully. He tried to keep a scowl on his face to make him look intimidating, but he knew Merle was about to get pissed. "I dumped it."

First, Merle's jaw locked, and then he took in a deep breath as he slowly rose from his position at the bottom of the fridge. As he stood straighter, he gradually turned his head toward Daryl’s direction. His body gradually followed as the man leered at the younger.

“What was that?” Merle’s jaw shifted as he locked it back in place. Without looking back, he slammed the refrigerator’s door shut and took a step towards Daryl. There was a mean look in Merle's eyes. He laughed, a rough sound. Then, he tossed his hands up and shrugged his shoulders. “Now, I know I didn’t just hear what I thought I just heard come out of my darling baby brother’s mouth.” His head cocked to one side and he showed off his teeth as he clicked his tongue against the roof of his mouth. “Naw,” he said slowly, looking Daryl over slowly. “I didn’t hear that.” He rolled his shoulders, lowering his arms to his sides in that threatening way he did when he was about to beat some poor fool. “You ain’t that stupid.”

"Naw, I ain't. I just know you don't need that shit right now. You just got out two damn days ago Merle, you really gonna push your luck by gettin' plastered tonight? Why don't you just chill and have a coke instead," Daryl lifted his chin up and locked eyes with his violent sibling, daring him to start something. Internally it wasn't as if Daryl was pleased with the lack of liquor either, but better a sober Daryl than a drunk Merle. 

Merle licked his lips slowly. He eyed his little brother and started to nod. 

“Yeah, alright. I see what you're doin'.” He took in a deep breath and puffed out his chest. Then, he let it out and shrugged off some of the need to beat that cute face in. “You’re just—“ He snuffed the air and wiped his nose with the back of his thumb. “Lookin' out for me, eh?” He nodded a little more and moved forward towards Daryl, still obviously tense. “Naw, I guess that makes sense. You're right. I should probably try to behave myself. Maybe a little.”

There was something still bitter in Merle’s body language.

Daryl nodded back, a nervous reaction he'd developed over years of dealing with his family. "Yeah? Good. Good, man. So let's get some dinner, okay?" He was eager to change the subject and get Merle's mind off his rage.

Merle moved over. Then, he lashed out, grabbed Daryl's head in a headlock, and gave his brother one swift punch to the gut. "Next time, don't fuck with my beer." After that, he let him struggle for a moment before letting him go. As Daryl regained himself, Merle took two steps back with his hands in the air, indicating he was done with the fight. "So," he said, laughing as he watched his little brother sort himself out. "What did ya want for dinner?"

Daryl gasped and clutched his stomach as he tried to regain his breath, then he stumbled back with his chin high and his chest puffed out in defense. "Screw you, man!" With that he turned and left the kitchen. His center ached and he didn't want to play house now. Once again Daryl was finding himself wondering why he'd come all the way up to New York to see Merle when the bastard obviously had no intentions to change. He never did, yet there was Daryl, ready to be his bitch at a moment's notice. 

He flopped down on the couch that had been doubling as his bed and flicked on the television, content only to tune out the sound of his kin's existence.

"Oh, come on now," Merle whined. "Don't have to go and be a bad sport about it." He moved over towards the couch. "Let's go get somet'in' to eat."  
Daryl sighed and shook his head. "No. I just want to sit here and wait for the night to be over. Maybe tomorrow you'll magically be less of a dick."

"Oh yeah? You think that will help?" Merle made a little contemplative expression then tucked in his lower lip and laughed, shaking his head while letting out a long, "Naw." He grabbed Daryl's shoulders and tugged the younger man up and off the couch. "Come on, little brother! Let's go get some of that chicken from that place we saw on the way back here. Huh? Sound good?"

In his own way, Merle thought he was being playful.

Daryl didn't see a lot of humor in it, but he wasn't going to reject his brother's attempt at reconciliation. "Fine." He rolled his shoulders back until Merle's hands fell away, he was still angry enough that he didn't want touched. "But it better be decent. All the food up this way sucks. Not fresh enough."

"Pft." Merle jerked his head back as if he'd just smelt something foul. "Try eating pig slop for six months!" The older man relaxed and urged his brother out to the pickup truck. It was beat down, but in the neighborhood it looked pretty average. 

The two ventured off towards the chicken place. Merle seemed more than eager to get out of the apartment and get some greasy city-fried poultry in his gut. That was impressive since he hadn't seemed to feel much like eating or drinking anything other than beer for the last couple of days.

Daryl's gut still ached from Merle's assault, but for the most part he was happy to ride in relative silence most of the way to the restaurant. He gazed out the truck window and took in the structure of the buildings. Everything in the city felt so crowded, like the buildings and people were magnets that gravitated toward each other and no amount of force could drive them apart. It seemed odd to Daryl that this was the case given the general sense of overwhelming cynicism he'd observed in his short stay. It seemed fitting somehow that Merle had landed them there. "Shit begets shit I 'spose," Daryl mumbled, mostly to himself. 

"What was that?" Merle asked, glancing over from his driving to eye his little brother.

"Nothing." Daryl glanced over at his brother and licked his lips thoughtfully. "Actually, Merle, I've been meaning to--" Daryl's thought was quickly forgotten as a high-pitched wailing siren penetrated his words. "What the hell?!"

Merle slammed on the brakes and pulled over to the side of the road. Luckily, no one else seemed to be in his way. 

"Shit! What the fuck is going on?" Merle looked up toward the sky, trying to find the source of the noise. Nothing was visible nearby. "Is it a fucking tornado or what!?"  
"Hell if I know! Jesus, Merle! You didn't have to break like that!" Daryl's startled rage directed itself at his brother. "Trying to get us killed?"

Merle grunted, his last word on the matter. Several more rounds of the blaring noise rang out before the siren finally stopped. He looked over at his bother and shrugged, a bit of paranoia still behind his eyes.

"Maybe it was one of them tests or something."

Daryl nodded and was inclined to agree. At least until he turned his attention back out the front window. Just as his heart was beginning to settle from the fright, it started to pound anew. "Merle?"

"Yeah?"

"Is that a fucking tank?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. We're just going to set everyone up before we get into the purging. Thanks for the kudos so far, it keeps us going! 
> 
>  
> 
> FYI, FictionDaze is Daryl, Claymore is Merle.


	3. The Grimes Boys

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Carl and Rick try to enjoy a guys' night without Lori, but things take an unfortunate turn.

“Alright, Lori. … Yes. We’ll be fine. … Yes. I love you too. … Alright. Bye bye.”

Rick hung up the phone and took in a deep breath and let it out slowly. Honestly, it was kind of a relief to have the day off and be able to just spend it with his son, Carl. Usually, his vacation days involved the whole family going and doing something. However, his wife had decided to visit with one of her friends for a girls’ night. That meant quality guy time between the two boys of the house!

Smiling as he came in, Rick held the big icebreaker behind his back in that obvious way good parents did when they wanted their kids to get excited. 

“Hey, Carl. Listen, your mama is going to be out tonight. So, it is just the two of us.” His smile was a tad restrained. He hoped Carl would be half as excited about the news as he was.

Carl looked up from the video game he was playing and his smile grew from happy-to-see-dad to I-get-dad-to-myself. "Seriously?! Awesome! What are we gonna do? Hey, whatcha got?" He leaned to one side and tried to see what the older man had concealed, but Rick just turned in sync with his son so the object stayed obscured.

Carl leaned the other way more quickly, now determined that there was something good going on behind his father.

Rick's expression brightened immediately. Seemed like it was going to be a wonderful night!

"Oh?" He teased Carl by lifting one shoulder and glancing over it, sure not to reveal the item behind his back. "This? Oh well, you probably don't want to know."

The father was trained to play coy.

"I do! Tell me!" Carl dropped the controller to the floor, his game forgotten, and clamored to his feet. He tried to run around his father to get a glimpse of what was surely the most awesome thing ever, but the taller man kept skirting the object just out of sight. "Come on, Dad!"

Rick teased his boy a while longer before he finally said, "Okay! But you can't tell your mama about this, okay? It is a secret between us guys."

"Okay, I promise," Carl said urgently.

The older man grinned ear to ear and pulled his hands out from behind his back. In the one hand was a box of extra buttery popcorn and in the other was the newest and scariest monster movie of the year. Carl hadn't been allowed to watch horror movies when his mother was home, but Rick had caught the boy watching the horror channel late at night more than once and he made his son promise not to do that anymore. In exchange, Rick agreed to rent an occasional feature when Lori wouldn't be home for a few hours and they'd sit and watch it together. It had been a while since Lori had gone out, so Rick thought it would be a perfect night to pop in something spooky and eat a ton of popcorn with his kid.

Carl's eyes went wide and he snatched the popcorn from Rick's hand and ran over to the couch. "Put it in! Everyone at school has seen this one but me!" He shoved a few pieces of popcorn into his mouth, then remembered his manners. He swallowed down the buttery kernels and grinned. "Thanks, Dad!"

Rick laughed a little and nodded towards his son. "You're welcome." Carl was a great kid and Rick was happy the boy still remembered to say thank you.

Rick put in the movie and played while the two sat together on the couch eating popcorn and enjoying occasional starts and scares that left them both twitching and jumping in their seats. Carl continuously tried to guess who would die next and how, and he celebrated every time he was right. Rick started to wonder halfway through the movie if it wasn't too violent for the boy, but he decided that it wasn't honestly that much worse than anything else they'd seen together and a certain level of desensitizing was good for a growing boy. Sometimes showing children monsters that weren't real was the best way to help them cope with the real ones.

Eventually, the end credits scrolled and Rick stopped the DVD and put it back in its case. 

"So," he asked knowingly. "Did you like it?"

"It was awesome! It was so cool how the blond guy died! I knew he shouldn't go in there but I didn't know it would be on the ceiling!" Carl shouted excitedly, his nerves jittery from both the film and the high-levels of snack intake. He knew somewhere in the back of his mind that the images would come back to haunt him in his sleep, but for now they were interesting and exhilarating. 

Giving Carl a pat on the head, Rick chuckled. "You're right. I wasn't expecting it either. I guess you should never assume where things might pop out from, because you never really know."

Rick ran his fingers through Carl's hair and then stretched out his own stiff limbs. He checked his watch. "Darn, it is almost eight."

"Oh darn," Carl mocked. "You know what we should do?" He jumped up and tugged on his father's arm, drawing Rick's attention away from the time in an effort to distract him.

"Hmm? What's that?" Rick smirked and quirked an eyebrow. He knew what all that popcorn would do to the boy's system. It was actually kind of funny.

"We should play my shooter game. I'll kick your butt!" Carl hyperactively skittered across the room and began to set up the game system without awaiting any confirmation.

Rick shrugged, happy enough to keep the night going as long as possible.

"All right. You get that set up and I'll go get us some more snacks and something to drink."

With that, Rick headed towards the kitchen.

Meanwhile Carl flicked on the television and was prepared to turn to the station that would allow him to view his game, but he stopped when he saw the blue screen and scrolling message. Normally it wouldn't interest him, but the first words of the woman's voice that drifted through the speakers caught his attention.

 _"Weapons of class 4 and lower have been authorized for use during the Purge. All other weapons are restricted. Government officials of ranking 10 have been granted immunity from the Purge and shall not be harmed. Commencing at the siren, any and all crime, including murder, will be legal for three consecutive days. Police, fire, and emergency medical services will be unavailable until the Purge concludes...."_  
Carl narrowed his eyes at the screen as the message went on. His stomach tightened with panic and he felt dizzy. He didn't know why the words made him feel so uneasy. "Hey, Dad?"

"Just a minute, Carl! I'll be there in a second." Rick had tried to superman everything into one trip and was now balancing the drink cups and snack bowl as he made his way back into the front room. He figured his son's tone had something to do with a simple wire crossing or other game-related problem that the older male could easily fix once he put everything down.

"Dad," Carl called again more urgently as the message began to repeat.

Rick entered the room and sat everything down onto the coffee table. He looked at Carl's expression and his own dropped. "What is it, Carl?"

"Is this some kind of movie?" Carl asked nervously. 

The older man followed his son's attention towards the screen and he began reading. However, before he could even finish, loud bomb sirens suddenly went off outside.

Carl jumped in surprise and turned to his father with large alarmed eyes. "What's going on?"

Rick quickly wrapped his arms around his son and held him close. He looked back to the screen and started to read again. The more he read, the louder the warning sirens seemed to get. By the time he finished reading the message over three times, the sirens finished their thirteenth round and silenced. Rick's heart was practically trying to rip out of his chest. 

"Carl," Rick said slowly. He swallowed the lump in his throat and tried to work his mind around what was going on. "I want you to go into the utility room and grab the emergency kit with the flashlight, okay?" 

The man sounded a bit distant. He couldn't believe what he was reading. He needed to find out immediately if what the television was suggesting was true or not.

Carl was panicking a little. Rick realized he had to be strong for his son and leaned down onto his level. He held the boy's shoulders. 

"Everything is going to be okay, Carl. I just need you to go and get the emergency kit in case the lights go out, okay? Don't you worry. I just need to call your mom and Shane, alright?"

"Okay," Carl said unsteadily. His ears were still ringing as he moved numbly away from Rick and toward the utility closet.

Immediately, Rick picked up the home phone and dialed Shane while he flipped through the channels. The broadcast was on every network. One channel even had male and female announcers who were discussing the "Purge" as some sort of religious and entertainment event. They promised to broadcast the sacrifices of thousands live. From what Rick could tell, sacrifices were human beings who would be killed by other human beings.

"Damn it, Shane! Pick up!"

In the other hand with his cellphone Rick started to text Lori, asking if she was all right.

The phone line finally stopped ringing and Shane's voice filled the other end. "You seen this shit, Rick? At first I thought some punks hacked the television network or something. But I called the station and no one is there. You know anything about this?"

"Damn it! I was hoping you could have told me something else." Rick grabbed his head using the hand with the cellphone in it and tried to calm himself down and think. "I haven't heard anything about this up at the station. Hell, I doubt anyone else knew about it either." 

For a moment, there was a kind of paranoia that said the city boys may not have enjoyed having a country sheriff and his deputy on their force, that they had failed to mention something of this gravity, but then Rick reminded himself to be rational. 

"Shane, you know what the message is saying, right? They can't actually do something like this, can they?"

Just then, his cell-phone started to ring. It was Lori.

"Hold on, Shane." 

Rick spoke to Lori who was asking about the sirens, she hadn't seen the T. V. report yet. Rick informed her about it and told her that it seemed legitimate and that she needed to stay where she was, bolt and lock up the house, and find a weapon, just to be safe. He told her he'd come for her as soon as he could. Then, he hung up and placed the home phone back to his ear.

"Still there, Shane?"

"Yeah I'm here. I didn't think they could pull a stunt like this, but if it's a joke I get the feeling there are going to be some casualties." Rick could hear his friend shuffling around on the other end of the line. "Listen Rick, I think it'd be safer if we were all together. Are Lori and Carl home?"  
"I agree. Lori's over at Choral's place though. I've got Carl, but I'm not so sure-- Wait."

Rick heard Carl fidgeting nervously behind him and cupped the mouthpiece to the phone as he turned to face his son. 

"Carl? Did you get the emergency kit?" He was trying to keep the boy's mind occupied on the task so it didn't have time to wander.

"Yeah," Carl said simply and held up the box by the handle. "Dad, what's happening?"

"Listen," Shane said in Rick's ear, "I'll pick up Lori and then I'm going to the police station to see if anyone is there. I'll bring her home and we'll buckle down at your place and wait for this pan out."

Rick motioned to Carl to give him a moment as he spoke to Shane. 

"All right. That sounds like a plan. We'll see you soon."

Rick hung up the phone and looked down at Carl. Carl was worried and starting to look really scared. Rick knew he had to keep his cool if he was going to keep his son safe and safe meant calm. 

"Carl, something is going on. You heard what the T. V. reporter said, right?" He waited for Carl to nod. "Well, it seems like it wasn't a joke. Now, not everyone is bad. You know that. But there are some people who might take advantage of the situation."

A scream made Rick jerk his head to the side. He looked out the window but couldn't see anything. Suddenly, he realized how dangerous the situation really might be. He rushed over and closed the blinds and drew the curtains. 

"Dad?" Carl sounded more than a little nervous. That pained his father's heart.

"It's all right, Carl. Shane's going to go get your mom and then meet us here." Rick moved to make sure everything was closed up and locked tight. "I just need you listen real close now, you understand?" 

Carl nodded. 

At once, the two closed off their house to make it more secure and started packing emergency bags. Rick awaited Shane and Lori's arrival as patiently as he could, but he could already hear the madness outside starting to pick up. He had been a sheriff for six years. He knew what kind of world they were all living in. Now, just inside New York's city limits, he was honestly terrified. Humanity was unpredictable. Rick decided then that he would do whatever it took to keep his family safe.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this chapter took so long! We got busy with life, but we hope to have the next chapter up soon.
> 
> Just for reference, FictionDaze is Carl and Shane. Demonic Claymore is Rick and Lori.


	4. Jason Todd, Alone

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jason decides to do a little shopping on a rather inopportune evening.

The shopping center was usually fairly crowded. It seemed like today was no exception to this rule, except that there seemed to be more idiots out than ever. 

“Move it!” Some asshole with a beer gut pushed past Jason. 

“Son of a—“ Jason had known better than to grab up one of those dixiecups of free juice, but he’d been jogging most of the day and he hadn’t placed the risk of being slammed into on such a high bar that he honestly thought he had to worry about it. Now, sugary red juice was staining his white t-shirt. “I knew I should have just worn black today. Damn it.”

Jason looked around for something to wipe away the mess with, but realized that unless he wanted to grab someone else and borrow their shirt for a moment, getting clean immediately wasn’t really an option. 

“I hate these fucking people,” he grumbled.

“Yeah, me too.”

Jason looked over and saw the rather tall, lanky college student had commented standing next to him. It caused the shorter but considerably better built man to raise an eyebrow. 

“Oh yeah?” Jason asked, some amusement in his tone.

“All of this over some stupid free knife.” The kid shook his head. “Neanderthals just like shiny things I guess.” After saying it, the boy clearly feared he might have upset the muscular hottie next to him. Thankfully, Jason laughed a little and shrugged. 

“I just can’t stand most people. I don’t know why I even shop here.”

“Because it's easy?”

“I’d say out of habit.”

“That makes sense. I suppose that’s why I come here too.”

Jason smiled and held out his hand. “The name’s Jason Todd. What about yours?”

“Darren Craft.” The student took Jason’s hand and gave it a firm shake. 

_Impressive for such a thin stick,_ Jason thought. 

“It’s nice to meet you.”

 _And he’s polite,_ Jason mused inwardly. _I bet you anything he’s single though._

“Nice to me you as well,” Jason said. Then, he let the boy’s hand go and put his own hands deep into the pockets of his jeans. “So, what’s this about a free knife?”

“Oh, the store has a deal with this cutlery company, so every few months or so they do this show where they try to lure in potential buyers with the promise of one free knife. It’s a little cheese knife too. I’m sure some of these people take advantage of the deal every time the have it just to get the stupid little thing.”

“Really?” Jason laughed. He remembered being offered something similar in the past. “So then, I don’t suppose you’re interested in one?”

“What? You mean a knife?” Craft laughed and shook his head. “No. I’m just here for some eggs and ramen.”

“The good ol’ college diet, eh?”

“Yeah,” Darren said wearily. “Money’s kind of tight right now. My complex jacked up my rent. So, now I have to find an extra two-hundred every month and I’m not getting any more hours at work.”

Small talk usually bored Jason. Lately though, he’d been feeling that pang of loneliness he liked to pretend wasn’t there. It made him think about his father and brothers. He didn’t want to consider how much he actually missed them. So, instead, he decided to take some solace in the cute stranger who just happened to think people in the store were as dumb as he did.

As the two continued exchanging some simple conversation of basic topics, they managed to squeeze through the crowds and find the isle with all the junk food a college kid could buy for cheap, including the ramen. 

“So, what are you here to buy?”

“Hmm?” Jason looked down into the cart as he considered the question. Then, he remembered. “Oh, right! I was going to check the prices on their goggles. I just got a new bike, but I hate wearing the full helmet. Still, wind and bugs sting the eyes if I don’t cover them. Plus, I lost two pairs of sunglasses already. So, I figured ‘Hey! Why not buys some goggles?’” 

“That’s cool.” Darren nodded and then looked uncomfortable again. He kept looking around briefly as though looking for a way to escape, but in that way that meant he just didn’t know what else to do.

“You know,” Jason started. He shrugged as he took a chance in offering the kid an alternative option. “If you’re fine with meeting me up front-- I mean, I don’t know if you brought your car or what, but I walked. Anyway, if you wouldn’t mind waiting, I could grab the goggles and we could go back to my place.”

Darren’s eyes grew wide and he looked scared for a moment. His eyes kept wandering over Jason’s body. Jason grinned. He’d been right about the kid after all. _Thank god._

“You don’t have to. I know we just met and everything, but I was thinking about ordering a pizza and it’s better when you don’t have to eat pizza alone.” 

“I’d love too!” Darren was quick to respond. 

Just quick enough.

“Great! I’ll be right back. Go ahead and check out!” Jason jogged through the store until he found the sports section. He felt really good. He hadn’t expected to make a friend, much less such a cute friend, that night. However, he was damn glad he had.

He made a mental note as well; _Better pick up some rubber too. Pizza parties tend to get messy at my place._

Jason laughed a little as he tried to find the goggles he’d seen a few days back when he was still just considering the idea. “Now where did- Ah! There you are.” He picked up the metallic black pair he’d found with the red-tinted lenses. “Perfect.”

As he walked back towards the pharmaceuticals, Jason suddenly heard an unnerving sound coming from outside the store. He paused and listened. “Sirens?”

A moment later, men in black SWAT-like suits entered the building and began making an announcement using the store’s intercoms. They had large number tens on the front, back, and sleeves of their uniforms. 

“Listen up!” The one spoke forcefully and clearly into the communication device. “The Purge is now in effect! Please listen closely to the following announcement!”

Suddenly, the sound of a woman’s voice rang out through the store, much clearer. Jason realized it was being streamed throughout the speakers from a separate device. He heard most of the noise coming from down the hall where the electronics department was.

“This is not a test. This is your emergency broadcast system announcing the commencement of the First Annual Purge sanctioned by the U.S. Government. Weapons of class 4 and lower have been authorized for use during the Purge. All other weapons are restricted.”

Jason wasn’t sure what was going on, but he slowly moved over towards the case with the hunting knifes just in case. He had a sick feeling in the pit of his stomach and his father’s words echoed in the back of his mind. 

_“Be prepared for anything.”_

As the message continued, he took advantage of everyone else’s stunned silence and wrapped his hand in a bandana from the shelf. Thankfully, just then, the attendant who was handling the area moved away and left the keys on base of the register for Jason to easily find. It was quieter than breaking the glass that was for sure. He moved behind the counter and slid open the case quietly after swiping the keys.

“Government officials of ranking 10 have been granted immunity from the Purge and shall not be harmed. Commencing at the siren, any and all crime, including murder, will be legal for three consecutive days.”

That was all the more Jason needed. He heard some people already starting to panic while others stared in disbelief. There wasn’t any time left to be tactful though. He opened the case quickly and started slipping hunting knifes into his leather jacket’s inner pockets next to the one he always kept on hand. 

“Police, fire, and emergency medical services will be unavailable until the Purge concludes. For more information, please see your local station thirteen for more information. This message will stream for the next 72 hours. Blessed be our New Founding Fathers and America. May God be with you all."

Jason had just unsheathed a rather fierce looking carving knife when he heard some asshole bust into the gun case.

“Shit.” He didn’t think the thing was loaded or that the store actually sold ammo, but he wasn’t going to take any chances. He needed to get out of there and he needed to do it quickly. He moved through the crowds and pushed passed some panicking people. “Move it!”

All at once, the store seemed to come alive with motion and noise. Jason could hear people screaming and he saw some of them looking around desperately or trying to fill their carts with things they’d wanted, but hadn’t been able to buy before the Purge.

Jason took advantage of the momentary distractions and snagged up a backpack on his way as he moved towards the front of the store. He decided it would be best to grab some snickers and bottled water if this thing was really going to last three days. Instinct had him searching around for his new friend. At first, he thought that the student might have gotten out of the store. Then, he heard the other man’s voice from behind him.

“Jason!”

Todd swerved around on his heel and saw that Darren had been captured in a hoard of hungry morons who were storming the front of the food isle. Something had either sent Darren back into that area, or he hadn’t been fast enough to get out of it. Regardless, the boy was holding up his hand to signal Jason while he fought through the mass of bodies around him. 

“I’m coming! Just move slow!” Jason moved forward half-wishing he hadn’t made it out of bed that morning. “Just don’t-“

Darren’s head disappeared out of sight. The mob was unreasonably aggressive and Jason couldn’t hear if the younger male was calling out to him or not.

“Move it!” Jason pushed through the group and found Darren on the floor, arm broken and lip bloody from the assault of the other shopper’s feet. “Shit! Come on. Get up before you get trampled!” 

Eventually, Jason got Darren onto his feet. 

“What’s going on? They can’t be serious? This can’t actually be happening, can it?” Darren was panicking. 

Jason looked the other male over slowly and realized that it was likely he was going into shock. He was pale and clammy and his eyes weren’t dilating properly.

“It doesn’t matter. Let’s just move.”

“Yeah. Oh-okay.” 

The two men pushed through the group of other people. It seemed like there was a good chance of getting out in one piece. The exit was visible over the tops of heads. 

“Come on! More idiots are coming in! We need to get out before something—“ Something jerked their movements to a violent halt. The force of the stop nearly pulled Jason’s arm out of socket. “Darren, what the heck are you….” Jason had turned to face his friend. His expression slowed everything else down. “…doing?”

Darren’s body made a jerking motion. His eyes were watery and he looked as though he might throw up. Then, he seemed to faint, eyes still wide open.

“Darren!?” 

The boy hit the ground and Jason could see the large butcher’s knife in Darren’s back. It had been slammed right between his shoulder blades. 

Everything else around Jason turned to white noise and the sound of rushing blood and the echo of reality. He looked up and saw the fat ass motherfucker who had taken to the Purge a little too quickly. The man, clearly not a well-off fellow with a eating problem and a passion for cheap liquor, looked Jason in the eye and shrugged.

 _You son of a bitch…_ Jason thought.

Then, the swine bent down and tried to pull the knife from Darren’s back. It had been one of the blades on display that evening. The bastard was one of those idiots who had waited in life for a free knife even though they knew they had no intention to pay money for an actual set. Jason could see the free “CHEESE KNIFE” in the fucker’s back pocket. That really churned Jason’s insides.

Once the man’s sweaty sausage fingers finally got a grip on the handle of the knife and he managed to wrangle it free, he stood and snorted a cruel and disgusting laughter that reminded Jason of every reason he truly hated people and he hated New York.

Behind the man, Jason could see that more than one other person had gotten the idea to murder while it was still legal. A young woman, dyed blond, and too thin and sickly looking not to be on drugs, had broken a bottle of wine over her boyfriend’s head. She was beating him with another one now. Then, there was this younger girl—one of those girls that probably got picked on a lot at school for being a little overweight and gothic—who had found a way to take revenge on her mother.

In less than ten minutes, the world had turned to madness. 

“Sorry about that, kid,” the murdering pig said with another one of those grunted chuckles. “Nothing personal.”

_…I’m going to kill you._

“Uogh! What- did- ghhuh…” The man looked at Jason with surprise and confusion.

The blade had slipped in easily enough. It was sharp, but it was the teeth and design Jason had to thank for the quick execution. He had stabbed it into the man’s thick stomach in one powerful motion. Then, using both hands, he carved a vertical line upwards, breaking through the man’s chest cavity and spilling his guts on the ground. It seemed to take the behemoth a while to figure out he was dead. 

Jason tore his hunting knife he’d stolen from the man’s chest and watched him fall. It was the shock that killed him, not the wounds. Todd just made sure the bastard fell backwards into the crowd instead of on Darren’s lifeless body. 

“I’m sorry.” Jason gave a brief moment of silence for the departed male. Then, he wiped his blade off on a shirt and decided he needed to have a little talk with one of the soldiers. Maybe one of them, the ones who had released the Purge upon the supermarket, could tell him a little more about what was going on.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Credit for this chapter goes entirely to Clay. *claps* So if you particularly enjoyed this chapter be sure to let him know. :)

**Author's Note:**

> Please feel free to let us know how we're doing! Oh and if anyone was curious, I write Murphy and Clay writes Conner. <3 Let us know if anything seems disjointed or if you notice any major errors. :)


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